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Wednesday, November 9, 2016

There's Got to be a Morning After

Sooooooo

I’m honestly flattened, knocked for a loop. I want to walk
the middle of the road so as not to put off readers or get people twisted up.
The Cubs, the
White Sox, the Bears, the Packers, North and South, and, dare I say their
names, Hillary and Trump. We all knew someone was going to lose and someone was
going to win.

We just all hoped it would be us, the other guy’s pain, not
ours. Last night, this campaign will forever go down in history, in collective
memory, as a bad nightmare.

I have friends on many sides of the aisle. On Facebook I
read posts thanking Jesus to others where the F-word showed up, with a few
others. I care about all of you. I care about the future, my daughter, the
economy (which just crashed), foreign policy. There is a lot that I wish could
change. I wish for a do-over.

This morning I was tired. Really really tired. A good
friend passed away last evening. He enjoyed walks in the park and last night he
walked down to a bench, sat down, and never got back up. He watched the sunset.
I learned of his death an hour or so before the polls closed. After getting
home from election judging I met some of the family coming in the back door
from the hospital where he was taken (across from the park). In the midst of
shock and sadness they told me—He voted! He was still wearing the wristband
given out at the polling place.

So this a.m. I worked my shift, showered, and watched
Hillary concede on TV. I tried to remember what made me happy, that sweet spot.
Biking! Reading books! Books! Being with my friends! So I hopped on my bike and
rode to Women
& Children First Bookstore. (LIKE THEM) I walked in and the lady behind
the counter said, How can I help you?

I stood in front of her and began to cry. She came out from behind the
counter and hugged me. Linda Bubon had spent her morning (a little hungover)
reading books to toddlers. Bless you. We gathered, talked, commiserated, cried.
I want to say we encouraged each other, but that’s not the case. I ended up
buying a book. A Map of Home by Randa Jarrar. [A Map of Home is a
2008 novel by Randa Jarrar. The book tells the life of a girl named
Nidali, the feminine version of Nidal, which means "struggle".A Map of Home is a coming-of-age tale,
telling the story of Nidali's life in Kuwait, Egypt, and the United States. Set during the 1990 invasion of Kuwait with the Palestinian-Israeli conflict as a
larger backdrop, the novel depicts the struggles of Nidali and her family,
exploring the question of what "home" means, and the character's
identity.]

Friends, sisters, readers, cyclists, let’s commit to each other to support
our local feminist bookstores. They are a rallying point, a place where we can
find solace in these trying times.

The brilliant and funny Jacqueline Woodson read from BROWN GIRL DREAMING and ANOTHER BROOKLYN--I'm to the left in this photo, not in the pic

Fantastic Resource!

NEW!!! e-book edition

eBook Edition Has bonus Material

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Quick Bio

Jane Hertenstein is the author of Home is Where We Live: Life at a Shelter Through a Young Girl’s Eyes (picture book), Orphan Girl: The Memoir of a Chicago Bag Lady (with Marie James), and Beyond Paradise (YA fiction). See BOOKS
She has taught mini courses in memoir at the university level as well as seminars at Cornerstone Festival, Prairie School of Writing. Jane is listed on the Illinois Artists Roster. Roster Artists are certified by the Illinois Arts Council to work in public schools introducing young people to the arts. She lives in Chicago where she facilitates a “happening” critique group.